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Event

Just Transitions in Coal Dependent Communities

Last Updated December 6, 2021
Oct
28
2021
This event has already occurred.

The Just Transitions Initiative, a collaborative project between the CSIS Energy Security & Climate Change Program and the Climate Investment Funds, is excited to present its new report: Understanding Just Transitions in Coal-Dependent Communities: Case Studies from Mpumalanga, South Africa, and Jharkhand, India.

The report, a first of its kind, is a comprehensive analysis of coal dependency in Mpumalanga and Jharkhand. The report unpacks just transition prospects in these jurisdictions, providing insights and recommendations useful for these regions and other coal-dependent economies.

This launch event will feature a conversation with Mandy Rambharos, General Manager: Just Energy Transition, Eskom, moderated by Joseph Majkut, Director of the CSIS Energy Security & Climate Change Program. Mafalda Duarte, CEO of the Climate Investment Funds (CIF), will provide opening remarks.

Highlights from the report will be presented by lead author Sandeep Pai (CSIS). Following the presentation, there will be a panel discussion on the findings featuring Hameda Deedat, Acting Executive Director of NALEDI, and Sandeep Pai (JTI), moderated by Hugh Searight (CIF).

This event and report are made possible by funding from the Climate Investment Funds (CIF) as part of the Just Transition Initiative (JTI).

Featuring

Mandy Rambharos
General Manager: Just Energy Transition, Eskom Holdings SOC Ltd.

Hameda Deedat
Acting Executive Director, NALEDI

Mafalda Duarte
CEO, Climate Investment Funds

Sandeep Pai
Senior Research Lead, JTI

Joseph Majkut
Director, CSIS Energy Security & Climate Change Program

Hugh Searight
Operations Officer, Climate Investment Funds

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from the Resource Library

Report/Case Study; Guidelines, Strategies and Recommendations
Sep 2020

Supporting Just Transitions in South Africa: A Case Study

This case study explores key dimensions of just transitions and draws lessons from the Climate Investment Funds (CIF)’s contributions to the energy transition, the expansion of renewable energy, and the implications for workers and communities in South Africa.

Geographic Scope
South Africa
Sectors
Energy
Mining
Detail
Focus Areas
Employment > Job creation and/or equality, Skills
Government intervention > Regulation
Investment > Other
Justice
Keywords
multilateral development banks
political economy
distributional justice
procedural justice
recognition
conceptual framework
coronavirus
coal sector
project evaluation
concessional finance
By
Michael Ward, Neha Sharma, Hugh Searight
Publishing Organization
Climate Investment Funds (CIF)
Development finance institution
Summary

This case study explores key dimensions of just transition in South Africa, which has a long engagement with the concept and was one of the first countries to include an explicit reference to just transitions in its Nationally Determined Contribution. The case study reflects on the contributions of the Climate Investment Funds (CIF), through its partner multilateral development banks, to the energy transition in South Africa.

The document uses the just transitions framework developed by the CIF and the Center for Strategic and International Studies to explore issues of social inclusion and distributional justice in South Africa’s energy transition. It provides a broader review of South Africa’s energy transition implications for national planning, and discusses social inclusion, financing, Covid-19 recovery programs, skills development and geographic disparities.

Report/Policy Tools or Evaluations
Jun 2021

Towards a Just Transition Finance Roadmap for India: Laying the foundations for practical action

The report identifies priority actions for the financial sector in India to address social risks arising from the economic transition, with the help of a just transition framework that assesses the exposure by sector and region.

Geographic Scope
India
Sectors
Energy
General
Industrial
Mining
Transportation
Detail
Focus Areas
Employment > Job creation and/or equality
Government intervention > Other, Public finance, Regulation
Investment > ESG and corporate engagement, Other, Private finance
Keywords
India Just Transition Finance Roadmap (JTFR) project
urbanization
digitalization
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
double materiality
credit rating
green bond regulations
ESG reporting
Central Banks and Supervisors Network for Greening the Financial System (NGFS)
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Suranjali Tandon, Annapurna Mitra, Nick Robins
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This report, a product of the India Just Transition Finance Roadmap (JTFR) project, identifies some priority actions that financial institutions can take to support climate action that also delivers positive results in terms of livelihoods and sustainable development. It involves a review of existing practices, an assessment of exposure by sector and region, and the identification of some priority actions for the finance sector. The authors describe the just transition agenda as the “connective tissue” that binds climate goals with social outcomes.

The authors highlight how India simultaneously confronts the challenges of multiple economic transitions—urbanization, digitalization, and the shift to zero carbon. They identify the distributional impacts on Indian states in sectors that are expected to be the most impacted, including: coal mining, electricity generation, agriculture, manufacturing and industry, along with transportation. Using the four dimensions of social risk arising from the net zero transition—namely livelihoods, energy access, public finance, and human development, they find that Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand, Chattisgarh, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Odisha, Telangana, and Rajasthan will be the most affected by the zero-carbon transition.

The authors suggest that the framework shows a possible mapping of risks to investments, highlighting the role that financial sector players, regulators, and policymakers need to play in ensuring that a just transition is achieved. Furthermore, they highlight how the framework can be used to provide guidance for investors to understand company operations in vulnerable regions, and whether there are any investment strategies capable of mitigating the risks in these regions. It can also provide guidance for investors seeking to align capital allocations with the just transition framework. From their conversations with investors, the authors identify how the just transition is still at an early stage of development in India and needs definition and how it needs to be placed in a core sustainable developmental context. Furthermore, the conversations also reveal that policy action is a crucial catalyst for a just transition and that shareholder engagement on just transitions is increasing.